Tests done on 12-year-old Zachary Reyna show no signs of activity from the brain-eating parasite he contracted earlier this month, according to his father.

Doctors had given Zachary the same experimental anti-amoeba drug used to treat 12-year-old Kali Hardig recently in Arkansas, the Reyna family told CNN affiliate WBBH. The Arkansas girl is only the third person in the last 50 years to survive this deadly parasite.

Extensive damage has been done to Zachary's brain, his father wrote Wednesday on a Facebook page dedicated to the Little League baseball player. Right now the family is looking for signs that his brain is still active.

"This is a small victory but we know the battle is not over," he wrote. "I feel like Zac was in a slump. ... All ball players go through them. We all do. As his Dad and Coach I do all I can to help him get out of it by giving him extra training and making adjustments to his swing. We all go through tough times and we need to find God and prayer to get through theses slumps of life."

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it will make the experimental drug that helped fight Zachary's amoeba available to physicians who consult it. The drug was originally created for breast cancer treatment, but has since been found effective against free-living amoeba infections.

Zachary's family told CNN affiliate WBBH-TV that the boy was kneeboarding with friends in a water-filled ditch by his house in LaBelle, Florida, on August 3. He slept the entire next day.

Zachary is an active seventh-grader, his family said, so sleeping that much was unusual. His mother took him to the hospital immediately. He had brain surgery, and doctors diagnosed him with primary amoebic meningoencephalitis, according to WBBH. The family said he is currently in the intensive care unit at the Miami Children's Hospital.

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After hearing of Zachary's case, the Florida Department of Health issued a warning for swimmers.

High water temperatures and low water levels provide the perfect breeding ground for this rare amoeba, called Naegleria fowleri, officials said. They warned the public to be wary when swimming, jumping or diving in freshwater with these conditions.

Kali Hardig was infected with the same parasite last month and was at Arkansas Children's Hospital in Little Rock.

The cases are nearly always deadly, but Kali's condition is giving the Reyna family some hope.

"We continue to be amazed by Kali's progress," her family said in a statement last week. "Today she's able to sit up on her own, write some words on a white board and stand with assistance for very brief stretches. She's even able to throw and catch a ball with her therapists. We are grateful for the continued prayers from Kali's supporters, which no doubt drive her recovery."

Her attending physician, Dr. Vikki Stefans at Arkansas Children's Hospital's Progressive Rehab Unit, said in a statement: "Kali's progress is definitely a credit to her wonderful family and support system. There is no longer a question of whether she'll survive and do well, but just how well."

Getting Naegleria fowleri is extremely rare; between 2001 and 2010, there were only 32 reported cases in the United States, according to the CDC. Most of the cases have been in the Southeast.

Naegleria fowleri is found in hot springs and warm freshwater, most often in the Southeastern United States. The amoeba enters the body through the nose and travels to the brain. There is no danger of infection from drinking contaminated water, the CDC said.

"This infection is one of the most severe infections that we know of," Dr. Dirk Haselow of the Arkansas Department of Health told CNN affiliate WMC-TV about Kali's case. "Ninety-nine percent of people who get it die."

Dr. Sanjiv Pasala, one of Kali's attending physicians, said doctors immediately started treating the girl with the experimental anti-amoeba drug they received directly from the CDC. They also reduced the girl's feverish body temperature to 93 degrees. Doctors have used that technique in some brain injury cases as a way to preserve undamaged brain tissue.

Several weeks ago, doctors checked the girl's cerebral spinal fluid and could not find any presence of the amoeba.

Willow Springs Water Park in Little Rock is the most likely source of Kali's infection, the Arkansas Department of Health said. Another case of the same parasite was reported in 2010 and was possibly linked to Willow Springs, a three-acre sand-bottom, spring-fed lake.

"Based on the occurrence of two cases of this rare infection in association with the same body of water and the unique features of the park, the ADH has asked the owner of Willow Springs to voluntarily close the water park to ensure the health and safety of the public," the health department said.

Willow Springs' website says its water is pH-balanced, chemically treated, chlorinated and routinely monitored by the health department.

The first symptoms of primary amoebic meningoencephalitis appear one to seven days after infection, including headache, fever, nausea, vomiting and a stiff neck, according to the CDC.

"Later symptoms include confusion, lack of attention to people and surroundings, loss of balance, seizures and hallucinations," the agency website says. "After the start of symptoms, the disease progresses rapidly and usually causes death within one to 12 days."

Here are some tips from the CDC to help lower the risk of infection:

• Avoid swimming in freshwater when the water temperature is high and the water level is low.

• Hold your nose shut or use nose clips.

• Avoid stirring up the sediment while wading in shallow, warm freshwater areas.

• If you are irrigating, flushing or rinsing your sinuses (for example, by using a neti pot), use water that has been distilled or sterilized.